2019/2/22: Sega CD: Crime Patrol, Iron Helix

[VideoGameCritic]

Check out my two new Sega CD reviews. Thoughts?

[goldenband]

Aww, I liked Iron Helix! But I'm absolutely not surprised that you didn't. You have to enjoy the whole process of mapping out each location and gradually figuring out how the game works, and I've been reading your reviews long enough to know that's not your style.

Still, my wife and I really did enjoy that one. With games like that, she usually does the mapping while I handle the game's controls, and it works out well for us. There are a couple really tricky/clever nuances on Hard difficulty, where DNA is hidden in places you wouldn't normally check. Even so, it's definitely a much simpler game than it tries to make itself seem.

Though the graphics are obviously much worse, I'm still surprised the Sega CD version of Crime Patrol scores a full letter grade lower (D) than the 3DO release (C). The 3DO port's limited continues really put a damper on things for me, given how fundamentally unfair/cheap the later levels become (in that "memorize everything or the game will snidely call you a loser" way that FMV games love to pull).

Regardless, very pleased to see two new Sega CD reviews -- they're always a welcome surprise to see on the front page.

[VideoGameCritic]

I love this kind of feedback goldenband! Constructive criticism that adds a lot more insight into the games. No two people see a game the same way. Thanks.

[goldenband]

I love this kind of feedback goldenband! Constructive criticism that adds a lot more insight into the games. No two people see a game the same way. Thanks.

Awww, thank you for the kind words! Full disclosure, I did write the site review for Iron Helix on Sega-16, so I may be a bit biased (or at least have some degree of Stockholm syndrome):

http://www.sega-16.com/2014/09/iron-helix/

I don't think I would've enjoyed Iron Helix -- and other FMV games like Wirehead, Night Trap, and Fahrenheit -- nearly as much if I'd played them alone. If nothing else, it means I can turn to my wife and randomly sing "Feel the heat...of the fi-yah!!" to make her crack up. Too bad Iron Helix doesn't have a memorable song to give it extra camp value.

What do you think is next for you on the Sega CD front? Obviously there are a lot of Genesis ports and multiplatform releases to wade through, and frankly that makes up the majority of the games you haven't reviewed on the system, though a few of those are noteworthy (consensus seems to be that the Sega CD release of B.C. Racers is by far the best version of the game).

If you want something interesting and exclusive to the Sega CD, you might try RDF Global Conflict (basically a tank version of AH-3 Thunderstrike) or Third World War (global conflict/strategy game). Speaking of memorable songs, Ultraverse Prime is also a game everyone should play at least once, just to hear the wonderfully over-the-top theme song (it's a below-average beat-'em-up otherwise).

[CaptainCruch]

You gave bad grades to Rebel Assault (Sega CD), Myst (Jaguar CD) and Iron Helix (Sega CD). I played those games on a Macintosh CD-ROM back in the days. I totally understand the bad grades - those games aged pretty badly. But you know what? I was really impressed with those games back in the days (I was around 12), I loved them and I thought they looked amazing! (Hard to believe nowadays....)

[goldenband]

You gave bad grades to Rebel Assault (Sega CD), Myst (Jaguar CD) and Iron Helix (Sega CD). I played those games on a Macintosh CD-ROM back in the days. I totally understand the bad grades - those games aged pretty badly. But you know what? I was really impressed with those games back in the days (I was around 12), I loved them and I thought they looked amazing! (Hard to believe nowadays....)

I think Rebel Assault is a perfectly decent game -- one that shoots itself in the foot, however, with a stupid difficulty system in which you're expected to basically memorize entire stages on Hard. That trashes the otherwise-playable Sega CD version, since you're expected to respond to things you literally can't see because of the poor video quality.

And funnily enough, that's the exact same problem with Crime Patrol, especially in its later stages. Oh, that blob in the corner is a gunman? Well, I'll have to take your word for it, American Laser Games. When I beat the game on Hard, I had to use compression artifacts as a "tell" to know where the next attack was coming from!